Thursday, May 22, 2003 | 11:15 a.m.
Two years of legal wrangling came to a close at the Clark County Commission Wednesday, with the board voting to enact strong new restrictions on any development in and near the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area.
Or maybe not.
Representatives of developer Jim Rhodes, who announced in March his $54 million purchase of 2,400 acres on top of Blue Diamond Hill, laid the groundwork during debate on the issue for a legal challenge to the county ordinance. Attorney Paul Larsen said the development restrictions passed Wednesday have the intent and effect of blocking his client's plans to build as many as 5,500 homes on the hill.
The law does not ban new houses outright, but through multiple restrictions such as distance setbacks from ridgelines, mandatory open spaces around new homes, restrictions to access from adjacent state routes and rules governing the appearance of the homes essentially makes large-scale development impossible, Larsen said.
He said the new county restrictions are a government "taking" of private property and as such are unconstitutional. Larsen pointed out that many of the dozen speakers for the ordinance stated specifically that they wanted to keep residential development out of the area -- and some of those speakers had helped draft the new county law.
He also said exceptions for existing development in the small village of Blue Diamond and for a few ranches in the area show that the law is aimed at his client.
"The only property affected is James Rhodes' property," Larsen said.
County counsel Rob Warhola, however, told the commission that the law would withstand a legal challenge, and despite Larsen's argument, the commissioners voted 6-0 to pass the rules. Commissioner Rory Reid, whose law firm works for Rhodes, abstained.
Commissioners Chip Maxfield and Bruce Woodbury, whose firms also have done work for Rhodes, asked Warhola for his blessing to participate in the discussion and vote on the issue. Their work for Rhodes was more limited than Reid's.
Commissioner Mark James, who lives in and represents most of the area of the 44,000 acres covered by the new restrictions, said the passage of the county law is "a day of celebration for everyone who calls Southern Nevada home."
The law "represents a culmination of months of arduous effort by my colleagues and countless Clark County citizens to enact some standards to preserve Red Rock and keep it the natural scenic wonder that it it."
Commissioner Yvonne Atkinson Gates motioned for the vote.
"As one of the fastest-growing communities in the country, we need to ensure that some areas in Southern Nevada are preserved and not completely overwhelmed with development," Gates said. "Red Rock is a jewel in our own back yard. It deserves protection."
James' participation in the vote could also play a role in a challenge to the county law. Rhodes last month unsuccessfully sued to block James from discussing, introducing or voting for the issue, arguing that the commissioner and lawyer provided advice on the land-use issue last year.
James said he only discussed the issue with Rhodes as a candidate for the commission seat.
Larsen said he does not know when the developer will file a challenge to the county law -- that decision is up to Rhodes -- or if there are grounds to challenge a complementary state law signed by Gov. Kenny Guinn earlier this week.
The state law proposed by State Sen. Dina Titus, D-Nev., prohibits adoption of more intense residential or commercial zoning throughout the same area, freezing the number of allowable homes at one per two acres. The Nevada Senate and Assembly passed the measure unanimously.
Both the state and county rules, if in place, deal a potentially fatal blow to Rhodes' plans to build as many as 5,500 homes on the hilltop, the site of an active gypsum mine.
However, Rhodes might not lose money on the deal. Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., and Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., have jointly proposed a federal buyout of the entire property. Rhodes has so far steadfastly said he is not interested in a buyout, although he might consider a land swap.
Defeating the state and local measures could have improved the value of the land.
The vote pleased about 30 environmental activists, bicyclists, and Red Rock Canyon enthusiasts, many of whom have been active for months trying to stop development on the hill. A half-dozen people, most of them representatives of Rhodes, opposed the ordinance.
For environmentalists and Blue Diamond residents at the hearing, however, the value of the land is tied to the fact that no homes are on the site. Residential development, argued Karen Hunt of the local arm of the Sierra Club, would not only impact the mine site, it would affect the conservation area around it.
Evan Blythin, chairman of the Red Rock Citizens Advisory Committee, said the move caps a long, hard fight to limit development.
"The commissioners did the right thing," Blythin said. "It moves us toward a sustainable and livable Southern Nevada."
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